Seychelles

The Seychelles sits just outside the main cyclone belt, so it's a viable year-round destination, but two monsoon seasons shape conditions: the southeast trade winds (May–September) bring cooler, breezier, choppier-sea weather good for windsurfing but less ideal for calm-water snorkelling; the northwest monsoon (December–March) is hotter and more humid with occasional heavy showers. April–May and October–November are the transition months — the calmest seas, least wind, and best all-round conditions.

Inter-island travel runs on a mix of short domestic flights and ferries. Mahé to Praslin is a 15-minute flight or a roughly 1-hour high-speed ferry; Praslin to La Digue is a quick 15–30 minute ferry. Booking these in advance during peak season (July–August, December–January) is worth doing, as popular ferry times sell out. Most visitors build a Mahé–Praslin–La Digue loop rather than trying to add further outer islands, which require chartered flights and considerably higher budgets.

On Mahé, taxis and hotel transfers are the norm; renting a car is possible and useful for exploring the mountainous interior and less-visited beaches, though roads are narrow and steep. Praslin has taxis and a limited bus service. La Digue is the outlier — bicycles are the default transport, with a handful of ox-carts and pickup-truck taxis for luggage and longer trips; there is essentially no car rental culture there and you shouldn't need one.

Seychellois Creole cuisine centres on fresh fish (grilled red snapper, tuna, kingfish), octopus curry, and rice with a tamarind- or coconut-based sauce, with strong Indian and French influence. Resort dining is generally excellent and the default for most visitors, but small Creole restaurants in Victoria (Mahé) and beachside takeaway shacks offer better value and, often, better fish than the hotel buffet. Fresh fruit — including breadfruit and the Seychelles' famous jackfruit — is worth seeking out at local markets.